Compass-box



(NoModl.)

T. P. RANDOLPH.

Compass Box.

No. 234,331. Patented NOV. 9,1880.

' Elven- 01" corners, of said lid.

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COM PASS-BOX.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent No. 234,331, dated November 9, 1880.

Application filed August 30, 1880.

To all whom t may concern Be it known that I, TnEoDoRE F. RAN- DOLPH, of Cincinnati, Hamilton county, Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Compass-Boxes, of which the following is a specification.

My invention comprises a light, cheap, durable, and jointless box, within which a surveyors compass can be securely housed, so as to be readily carried about from place to place without danger of being broken or otherwise injured, the peculiar construction of said seamless box bein ghereinafter'more fully described, and pointed out in the claims.

y In the annexed drawings, Figure lis a plan view, showing my box in its open position. Fig. 2 is an enlarged vertical section of the same in its closed condition. Fig. 3 is a greatly enlarged section of a portion of the body of the box.

The bottom A and the four sides B of the lower portion or body of the box are coustructed without seams or otherjoints, as they are all composed of a single piece ot' heavy leather, which is first soaked in water or otherwise rendered sot't and pliable, and after being thus softened said leather is placed in a die or mold and subjected to the action of a plunger or follower. This plunger forces the leather into the die and retains it there until the leather has had time to set and become hard and stiti'. rlhe plunger is then retracted and the leather withdrawn from the mold, the leather being now free from seams or joints or any sharp angles, and the vertical corners oi' the same being rounded very considerably, as shown at b in Fig. l. Another piece of leather, made in preciselyY the same manner, serves as the seamless lid or cover ot' the box, C being the top, D the vertical sides, and d the rounded E E are hinges or straps wherewith this lid is coupled to the body A B, said body havin g secured to its upper margin a valance, F, which conceals the parting of these two members A B and C D.

Securely fitted within the body A B-is a block, G, having a central circular pit, H, to receive the compass, it being understood that the box herein represented has been designed more especially to contain an instrument similar to the one described in the patent issued to me J une 24,1879. Located at the front corners of the box are two other blocks, I I',

(No model.)

having turn-buttons J J', that retain in position the compass and its accessories, such as the telescope, Src.

K is a stump, overwhich is sprung the shadetube L of the telescope.

Depending from the top C is a block, N, that terminates with a cone, O, the latter being adapted to enter the ball-socket in the under side of the compass, the instrument being i11- verted when placed in the box, so as to protect the glass and thereby obviate the necessity ot' a special cover for the same.

P is a strap, and R a buckle, that maintain the lid in a closed condition. S is a strap or other suspender, wherewith the box can be readily slung around a persons shoulder or attached to a saddle. l

Whatever' size this box may be made it is evident it combines the ad\v'antages ot' lightness, strength, durability, and cheapness, as it cannot warp nor split, neither can it be broken by -a fall, as there are no sea-ms or nailedjoiuts to come apart. Furthermore, the comparatively elastic nature ot' the leather prevents the instrument being injured, no matter how roughly the box may be handled.

My invention may be modified by cementing together two or more thin pieces ot' leather and then pressing` them in a die, so as to cause them yto become practically a single piece.

I claim as my invention- 1.. A seamless compass-box consisting of a body whose bottom A and sides B are -formed out ot' a single piece oi' pliable material pressed into the desired shape, said body being stift'- ened with a block, G, provided with a pit, Il, to receive the instrument, a lid, C D, ot' similar construction to the body, being' hinged to the latter, and having a projection, O, that enters the compass-socket when said lid is closed, as herein described.

2. A seamless compass-box consisting of IOO 

